Ousted Burkina Faso leader Damiba in Togo after coup: Government
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Togo's Minister of Communication says ousted Burkina Faso leader Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba is in Togo as part of the country's commitment to "peace in the sub-region."
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Ousted Burkina Faso leader Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba
Togo's government on Monday confirmed that ousted Burkina Faso leader Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba had fled to Togo after a military coup.
West African bloc ECOWAS plans to send envoys to Burkina Faso after troops toppled Damiba in the country's second coup in nine months.
Togo's Minister of Communication and government spokesperson, Akodah Ayewouadan, said Damiba was in Togo as part of the country's commitment to "peace in the sub-region."
"Togo, like ECOWAS, welcomes the fact that the spirit of peace has prevailed," the official said in a response to questions from AFP.
"The reception of... Damiba is part of this spirit."
The streets of Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou were calm on Monday after a two-day clash between military rivals.
Damiba on Sunday had agreed to step down, religious and community mediators said after new self-declared leader Captain Ibrahim Traore stated that he had been forced out.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said it welcomed "a peaceful settlement of their differences" and announced it would dispatch a delegation to Ouagadougou.
Order was being restored in Burkina Faso: Traore
On Saturday, Traore said that order was being restored in the country following violent protests against the French embassy in Ouagadougou and days of clashes.
Security forces fired harmful tear gas at protesters outside the embassy, according to an AFP journalist.
Traore's side urged people to refrain from attacking the French embassy that was targeted after an officer involved in the coup revealed that France had sheltered Damiba at a French military base in the country and that he was planning a counteroffensive.
The French Foreign Ministry claimed the base had not hosted Damiba after his ouster on Friday. Damiba, whose whereabouts were unknown at the time, also denied he was at the French base, claiming that the reports were a deliberate manipulation of public opinion.
"We want to inform the population that the situation is under control and order is being restored," an army officer announced in a statement broadcast on national television.
"We invite you to continue with your activities and refrain from all acts of violence and vandalism... notably that against the French embassy and the French military base," the officer said.
On Friday, Traore announced that he led a coup against Damiba, dissolved the government, and suspended Burkina Faso's constitution and transitional charter.
Traore said a group of officers took the decision to topple Damiba over his inability to deal with the growing terror attacks in the country. The borders are currently closed indefinitely and all political and civil society activities have been suspended, he added.
This is the country's second military coup in eight months, with Damiba only assuming power in January after ousting former President Rock Kabore via a coup of his own in light of growing frustration over the state of the country's security.
